Blanket media coverage over the death of Whitney Houston continues. The airwaves are saturated with experts talking about the singer’s final moments, proffering unsolicited advice to bereaved fans and Houston’s family.

Enter Shelley Ross from the website Daily Xpress who in sincere and emphatic tones told CNN that “ultimately Whitney Houston gets the responsibility for what happened to her…Whitney was a junkie”…She adds with conviction, that the singer was “suffering the ravages of cocaine abuse.”

Commenting emphatically on the cause of death before the finding, let alone burial, is not only in questionable taste but also risks being wrong. This interviewee was unable to confirm anything substantive directly. When that is the case, being less emphatic and more circumspect is always the preferred route.

The PR Verdict: “F” for Shelley Ross and the ‘expert” opinion of Xpress. There was nothing expert about it. That was the problem.

Ross shoots herself in the foot in this interview by stating “ I am not saying I knew her but I knew people who worked with her and other well meaning people.” Nice try. But without direct first hand knowledge, commenting on Houston’s death seems nothing more than a craven search for publicity. This would have been a better interview to decline.